How to Bet On the NFL

When it comes to betting on sports there is nothing more popular than the NFL. The Super Bowl alone is a multi-billion dollar betting event and that is just one game. The first step to get started betting on the NFL is to find an online sportsbook to take your bets and Sports Betting Stats has you covered with insider reviews for all of the top books in the game today.

The most popular way to bet on the NFL is on the “point spread” for each week’s games. Oddsmakers will usually release that week’s point spreads on Monday for that week’s schedule. The spread is designed to level the playing field between the favorite (giving the points) and the underdog (getting the points) in a particular matchup. Keep in mind that a point spread is not a prediction of the margin of victory; rather it is a handicapping tool to help balance out the total money wagered on either side of a game. Many times it is wrapped around a football scoring increment such as three points for a field goal or seven points for a touchdown (plus an extra point).

The next biggest way to bet on NFL games is the “total line”. Oddsmakers will set a betting line wrapped around the projected combined score of both teams in a particular matchup. You can then bet that the actual combined score stays “under” that number or goes “over”. Total lines in the NFL can range from the high 30’s on the low end all the way up to the high 50’s on the high end. Along with the matchup on the field, other intangibles such as weather, key injuries and field conditions can have an impact on how the total line for a game is set.

You can also bet on the NFL with the use of a money line. In this type of wager, your starting point is a head-to-head matchup between two teams. Using a $100 as a base bet, the money line for the favorite determines how much money you have to risk to win $100, while the money line for the underdog determines how much you can win for that $100 bet. For example, if Dallas is a seven-point favorite against Washington on the point spread, the money line for that game might be set at -300 for a bet on the Cowboys and at +250 for a bet on the Redskins. What this means is that you would have to risk losing $300 to make $100 betting on Dallas to win straight up, while you would collect $250 on your $100 bet on Washington if its pulls-off the upset.

Another way you can bet on NFL games to try and enhance your overall return is to combine two or more individual bets into a parlay. Some sportsbooks will allow you parlay as many as 10 or 11 games together in one combined wager, but the catch is that you need to win every game to cash in. While the return on a $100 parlay bet can be very attractive depending on how many games you bundle together, you also have to keep in mind just how hard it can be to pick the winner in just one game. A variation on a parlay bet is a “teaser”. In this type of wager, you can move a point spread one way or the other in each of the games included in the parlay bet to enhance your chances to win.

Futures and props make up a big part of the total amount of money bet on the NFL. Futures are betting odds for an event that will take place somewhere down the line such as the Super Bowl, while a prop bet covers particular aspects of the game such as how many yards will a quarterback throw for. Both are designed to add even more betting action to the most heavily bet sport in the world.

If you are looking for some inside tips and betting strategies when it comes to wagering on football, be sure to check-out the NFL section on SportsBettingStats.com.

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